A large part of investing consists of paying attention to details. It's not enough to know what a certain company or industry is experiencing over a short-term basis, but to examine the details and to put those details into historic perspective.
It is in this light that today's presentation will advise anyone and everyone to distrust the mainstream media reports of the economy in general, and often, even the specific.
Back in the early portion of this century, word began circulating about a mysterious group called the Plunge Protection Team (PPT for short), which had the extraordinary power of pulling the entire equity market out of a crash, thus restoring confidence to traders and investors.
For a long time, people who believed that the PPT existed at all and was causing the wild fluctuations seen in the summer of 2001 and 2002, were dismissed as conspiracy nuts and tin-foil hat wearers. However, the PPT had been exposed beforehand, and it was indeed real. Its true name was the Working Group on Financial Markets, and it was created via an executive order 12631, signed on March 18, 1988 by US President Ronald Reagan, largely in response to the market turmoil that resulted in a 22% drop on October 19, 1987.
The PPT is real, though current manipulators may not exactly match the same original cast of characters, there is still a shadowy group of government people making sure the equity markets don't crash, or, at the very least, they enter the market to manifest a desired outcome.
Just in case you still don't believe in the power of the PPT, or that the market can be massively manipulated on a short-term (leading to long-term) basis, consider that today from 3:17 to 3:38 pm ET, a span of a mere 21 minutes, the Dow Jones Industrials jumped from 16,261.93 to 16.444.04. That's 182.11 points, a number that would be exceptional (a better than 1% gain) for an entire session.
Thus, the Dow - and along with it, the S&P and NASDAQ - went from near the day's lows to modestly positive, nearing the close of the session. These heady days, as perception exceeds reality by a longshot, that result will be precisely ONLY what the mainstream media reports. Not that markets were in turmoil and extending losses from last week, or, that market conviction suddenly changed dramatically, but ONLY that stocks were up on the day. All is well. Nothing to see here. Move along.
That there are government entities meddling in what used to be fair, honest and open markets should be enough to discourage just about any thinking person to not only abhor the practice of manipulation, but to remove themselves and their money from the fraud that is Wall Street, because, if government operators can make the market go up, they have an equal power to make it go down, or up-then-down or whatever they wish it to be.
In essence, stock markets are not fair and open and free anymore, and haven't been for quite some time. Most stocks these days are wildly overvalued, and for good reason. The retirements of millions of Americans are tied to stocks. Not only that, but the entire economy of the planet is tethered, one way or another, to the US equity markets. There are sovereign wealth funds, trust funds, hedge funds, mutual funds and all other manner of funds, ETFs and investment vehicles that are inexorably tied to the success or failure of stocks.
Suppose there is a massive bear market in stocks, like we witnessed in 2000, and again in 2008. People panic. They sell. But that's old news. People don't move markets any more. Computers do, and those are controlled by the barons of Wall Street, the banks and brokerage firms.
Thus, the PPT does not have to exist at all anymore. There only needs to be a mechanism for all the main traders to move at once in the same direction, and that mechanism is probably already in place, has been used in the past, is being used presently and will be used in the future, either to make stocks cheaper (down) or more expensive (up). Either way, the trading firms will have the upper hand, advance notice and the blessing of the federal government.
US markets are not what they appear to be. For instance, they are much more thinly traded than ever, by fewer participants, many of whom are nefarious, criminal and immoral. Individual investors would likely be better off stuffing cash into a mattress, buying gold or silver, or trading comic books, baseball cards, Beanie Babies or other collectibles. Realistically, the collectible market is very robust and smart individuals can actually make a good living on places like eBay or Craigslist. The art market is also very good, especially for rarities.
Leave the stock market to professionals. If you like to gamble, try the lottery, the horses, or fantasy sports betting, because the Dow Jones Industrials, the S&P, the NASDAQ and the NYSE have become nothing more than sophisticated casinos, operating without gaming licenses, and the house always wins.
Always.
Today's closing quotes:
S&P 500: 1,923.67, +1.64 (0.09%)
Dow: 16,398.57, +52.12 (0.32%)
NASDAQ: 4,637.99, -5.64 (0.12%)
Crude Oil 31.31 -5.58% Gold 1,095.60 -0.21% EUR/USD 1.0855 -0.60% 10-Yr Bond 2.1580 +1.31% Corn 351.25 -1.61% Copper 1.97 -2.52% Silver 13.85 -0.49% Natural Gas 2.39 -3.16% Russell 2000 1,041.90 -0.41% VIX 24.30 -10.03% BATS 1000 20,518.11 -0.16% GBP/USD 1.4540 +0.22% USD/JPY 117.7050 +0.79%
Monday, January 11, 2016
Friday, January 8, 2016
It's Not China; Dow Dumps 1000 Points in First Week of 2016
Thursday night in the US - Friday morning in the People's Republic of China - all eyes were glued to the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE), to see whether Chinese authorities' plan to suspend their rules on circuit breakers - a fifteen minute pause on a 5% loss, and closing for the day should a 7% loss occur - would hold stocks up or allow massive dumping of overpriced equities.
Disappointing many who would relish the thought of a worldwide collapse of the global stock Ponzi scheme, Chinese traders showed great restraint and state-owned companies bought equities on a wholesale basis, averting a rout in the market by posting a gain of nearly two percent.
It didn't do much good to support the overwhelming narrative of the mainstream press in Europe and the United States, as shares across the continent fell by 1.5% on average across the largest bourses, and the FTSE 100 in Great Britain shedding 0.70%.
In the US, hopes were high when the BLS announced a non-farm payroll increase of 292,000 jobs for December, above even the most aggressive estimates.
The markets didn't care.
Stocks showed modest gains across the three major averages at the open, but the narrative - and the indices - failed to produce positive results. By the end of Friday's session, the S&P joined the Dow and NASDAQ in correction territory, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average showing one of the worst weekly performances of all time, mirroring the collapse in August by shedding over 1000 points.
It was a horrific start to the new year, with the major averages shedding more than 6% on the week, the Dow posting triple-digit losses on four of the five days, the NASDAQ dropping by more than 7%.
The results for the week were downright depressing, the worst weekly start to a new year in the history of US exchanges:
S&P 500: -121.94 (-5.97)
Dow: -1079.12 (-6.19)
NASDAQ: -363.78 (-7.26)
On the day:
S&P 500: 1,922.02, -21.07 (1.08%)
Dow: 16,346.18, -167.92 (1.02%)
NASDAQ: 4,643.63, -45.79 (0.98%)
Crude Oil 33.09 -0.54% Gold 1,102.30 -0.50% EUR/USD 1.0921 -0.01% 10-Yr Bond 2.13 -1.07% Corn 356.25 +0.92% Copper 2.02 -0.25% Silver 13.94 -2.82% Natural Gas 2.49 +4.53% Russell 2000 1,048.78 -1.48% VIX 26.08 +4.36% BATS 1000 20,550.58 -1.01% GBP/USD 1.4524 -0.69% USD/JPY 117.51 -0.12%
Disappointing many who would relish the thought of a worldwide collapse of the global stock Ponzi scheme, Chinese traders showed great restraint and state-owned companies bought equities on a wholesale basis, averting a rout in the market by posting a gain of nearly two percent.
It didn't do much good to support the overwhelming narrative of the mainstream press in Europe and the United States, as shares across the continent fell by 1.5% on average across the largest bourses, and the FTSE 100 in Great Britain shedding 0.70%.
In the US, hopes were high when the BLS announced a non-farm payroll increase of 292,000 jobs for December, above even the most aggressive estimates.
The markets didn't care.
Stocks showed modest gains across the three major averages at the open, but the narrative - and the indices - failed to produce positive results. By the end of Friday's session, the S&P joined the Dow and NASDAQ in correction territory, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average showing one of the worst weekly performances of all time, mirroring the collapse in August by shedding over 1000 points.
It was a horrific start to the new year, with the major averages shedding more than 6% on the week, the Dow posting triple-digit losses on four of the five days, the NASDAQ dropping by more than 7%.
The results for the week were downright depressing, the worst weekly start to a new year in the history of US exchanges:
S&P 500: -121.94 (-5.97)
Dow: -1079.12 (-6.19)
NASDAQ: -363.78 (-7.26)
On the day:
S&P 500: 1,922.02, -21.07 (1.08%)
Dow: 16,346.18, -167.92 (1.02%)
NASDAQ: 4,643.63, -45.79 (0.98%)
Crude Oil 33.09 -0.54% Gold 1,102.30 -0.50% EUR/USD 1.0921 -0.01% 10-Yr Bond 2.13 -1.07% Corn 356.25 +0.92% Copper 2.02 -0.25% Silver 13.94 -2.82% Natural Gas 2.49 +4.53% Russell 2000 1,048.78 -1.48% VIX 26.08 +4.36% BATS 1000 20,550.58 -1.01% GBP/USD 1.4524 -0.69% USD/JPY 117.51 -0.12%
Thursday, January 7, 2016
Slaughter On Wall Street: Stocks Whacked Again As China Markets Close Early; Macy's Lays Off Thousands
Sure, the economy is just fine.
That's what the pundits on Bloomberg and CNBC would have you believe.
So, if everything is so darn good, why is Macy's - which has over 700 stores in the US - closing 40 stores and laying off 4,500 employees?
And why did the NASDAQ and the Dow close the day in correction territory (down 10% from high) today, with the S&P not far off?
People who host shows and are guests on TV want you to believe it's all China's fault. Over on mainland China, their stock markets closed early for the second time this year. That's twice in four days that circuit breakers have been triggered. A 7% selloff causes the market to shut down. Those are their rules. Or, rather, those were their rules.
Early in the US session, Chinese authorities announced that they were suspending the circuit-breaker rule, so their stock markets may fall a lot deeper tomorrow than a mere 7% before everything in the People's Republic goes down the drain.
It's not China's fault. It's the fault of the Fed, the government (for looking the other way and accepting bribes from corporations and banks), and the greed of Wall Street. It's also the fault of smart people taking their money out of the rigged casino, aka Wall Street, before it all vanishes, like it did in 2000, or 2008.
Also, Yahoo! is laying off 1000 employees as part of their reorganization plan. One employee that isn't being let go, but should, is CEO Marissa Mayer, of whom Money Daily said years ago was nothing but a wannabe, a poser, with no measurable skills for running a company.
Yes, the economy is not good, Wall Street and the government is run by a gang of crooks, and, incidentally, those highly-paid CEOs, like Ms. Mayer, should be in bread lines with the rest of the people being let go, because they're incompetent.
America, a once-great country, is going down the tubes, and in a big hurry. The culprit is not some foreign entity, terrorism, guns or aliens. The reasons can be found all over the country. Greedy lawyers, greedier bankers, corrupt government officials, incompetent business leaders, and, interwoven into the fabric of this country, placid, placated, ill-educated, preoccupied, self-engrossed people who vote (or don't) in elections and think they've done their part are all part of the problem, and not part of the solution.
But, people could be the solution. If people stopped making poor decisions, stopped listening to people in authority positions, and started taking responsibility for their own lives, rather than hoping for handouts from an uncle sugar government, people could solve their problems on their own.
The concept of self-reliance has been largely lost in America, but, herms hoping it's going to make a comeback when people wise up to the antics of politicians who don't deliver on their promises and kick them to the curb, where they belong.
There are lots of problems in this country that people could solve on their own if they took charge of their own lives. That, truthfully, may be asking for too much. We've wasted too much time in this country and waited too long for the governing class to do the right thing. Now, it may be too late, and we'll all just have to fend for ourselves.
Actually, that may not be too bad a thing.
The day on wall Street was not pretty, with major indices taking a third huge loss in four days. The Dow Industrials are down nearly 1000 points so far this year, putting 2016 already 6% in the red for even the safest stocks. Averages were lower all day, with no signs of rallies, and, perhaps more telling than anything, there was no snap-back at 3:30 on short covering, which has been the norm of late.
As noted by the quotes below, WTI crude oil finished with a 33 handle, a number not seen in the oil pits in 12 years. Gold and silver have broken out of moribund ranges, though holding and advancing from these levels may be difficult, as central banks collude to keep currency that may compete with the almighty dollar, euro or yen at undesirable levels.
What's undeniable about the gold and silver rigging is that it is unsustainable long-term, though central banks and their henchmen in the COMEX have managed to keep sending the prices of precious metals lower for nearly five full years. With stocks potentially falling out of favor, bonds, cash and PMs may appear to be the best bets with which to ride out a currency storm, a scenario that could be occurring in real time as the dollar/yen carry trade continues to unwind.
There is chaos everywhere, and, for the final trading day of the new year's first week, two important developments will be how the Chinese markets fare and US non-farm payroll data for December, due for release at 8:30 am ET.
Closing prices for Thursday, January 7, 2016
S&P 500: 1,943.09, -47.17 (2.37%)
Dow: 16,514.10, -392.41 (2.32%)
NASDAQ, 4,689.43, -146.34 (3.03%)
Crude Oil 33.21 -2.24% Gold 1,109.20 +1.58% EUR/USD 1.0929 +1.41% 10-Yr Bond 2.1530 -1.10% Corn 352.00 -0.35% Copper 2.02 -3.16% Silver 14.32 +2.50% Natural Gas 2.37 +4.46% Russell 2000 1,064.57 -2.72% VIX 24.99 +21.37% BATS 1000 20,761.26 -2.29% GBP/USD 1.4618 -0.05% USD/JPY 117.5480 -0.80%
That's what the pundits on Bloomberg and CNBC would have you believe.
So, if everything is so darn good, why is Macy's - which has over 700 stores in the US - closing 40 stores and laying off 4,500 employees?
And why did the NASDAQ and the Dow close the day in correction territory (down 10% from high) today, with the S&P not far off?
People who host shows and are guests on TV want you to believe it's all China's fault. Over on mainland China, their stock markets closed early for the second time this year. That's twice in four days that circuit breakers have been triggered. A 7% selloff causes the market to shut down. Those are their rules. Or, rather, those were their rules.
Early in the US session, Chinese authorities announced that they were suspending the circuit-breaker rule, so their stock markets may fall a lot deeper tomorrow than a mere 7% before everything in the People's Republic goes down the drain.
It's not China's fault. It's the fault of the Fed, the government (for looking the other way and accepting bribes from corporations and banks), and the greed of Wall Street. It's also the fault of smart people taking their money out of the rigged casino, aka Wall Street, before it all vanishes, like it did in 2000, or 2008.
Also, Yahoo! is laying off 1000 employees as part of their reorganization plan. One employee that isn't being let go, but should, is CEO Marissa Mayer, of whom Money Daily said years ago was nothing but a wannabe, a poser, with no measurable skills for running a company.
Yes, the economy is not good, Wall Street and the government is run by a gang of crooks, and, incidentally, those highly-paid CEOs, like Ms. Mayer, should be in bread lines with the rest of the people being let go, because they're incompetent.
America, a once-great country, is going down the tubes, and in a big hurry. The culprit is not some foreign entity, terrorism, guns or aliens. The reasons can be found all over the country. Greedy lawyers, greedier bankers, corrupt government officials, incompetent business leaders, and, interwoven into the fabric of this country, placid, placated, ill-educated, preoccupied, self-engrossed people who vote (or don't) in elections and think they've done their part are all part of the problem, and not part of the solution.
But, people could be the solution. If people stopped making poor decisions, stopped listening to people in authority positions, and started taking responsibility for their own lives, rather than hoping for handouts from an uncle sugar government, people could solve their problems on their own.
The concept of self-reliance has been largely lost in America, but, herms hoping it's going to make a comeback when people wise up to the antics of politicians who don't deliver on their promises and kick them to the curb, where they belong.
There are lots of problems in this country that people could solve on their own if they took charge of their own lives. That, truthfully, may be asking for too much. We've wasted too much time in this country and waited too long for the governing class to do the right thing. Now, it may be too late, and we'll all just have to fend for ourselves.
Actually, that may not be too bad a thing.
The day on wall Street was not pretty, with major indices taking a third huge loss in four days. The Dow Industrials are down nearly 1000 points so far this year, putting 2016 already 6% in the red for even the safest stocks. Averages were lower all day, with no signs of rallies, and, perhaps more telling than anything, there was no snap-back at 3:30 on short covering, which has been the norm of late.
As noted by the quotes below, WTI crude oil finished with a 33 handle, a number not seen in the oil pits in 12 years. Gold and silver have broken out of moribund ranges, though holding and advancing from these levels may be difficult, as central banks collude to keep currency that may compete with the almighty dollar, euro or yen at undesirable levels.
What's undeniable about the gold and silver rigging is that it is unsustainable long-term, though central banks and their henchmen in the COMEX have managed to keep sending the prices of precious metals lower for nearly five full years. With stocks potentially falling out of favor, bonds, cash and PMs may appear to be the best bets with which to ride out a currency storm, a scenario that could be occurring in real time as the dollar/yen carry trade continues to unwind.
There is chaos everywhere, and, for the final trading day of the new year's first week, two important developments will be how the Chinese markets fare and US non-farm payroll data for December, due for release at 8:30 am ET.
Closing prices for Thursday, January 7, 2016
S&P 500: 1,943.09, -47.17 (2.37%)
Dow: 16,514.10, -392.41 (2.32%)
NASDAQ, 4,689.43, -146.34 (3.03%)
Crude Oil 33.21 -2.24% Gold 1,109.20 +1.58% EUR/USD 1.0929 +1.41% 10-Yr Bond 2.1530 -1.10% Corn 352.00 -0.35% Copper 2.02 -3.16% Silver 14.32 +2.50% Natural Gas 2.37 +4.46% Russell 2000 1,064.57 -2.72% VIX 24.99 +21.37% BATS 1000 20,761.26 -2.29% GBP/USD 1.4618 -0.05% USD/JPY 117.5480 -0.80%
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